XBB.1.5 likely to be the next major Covid subvariant

Covid-19 cases are on the rise yet again, and according to an early data, the XBB.1.5 sub-variant is no more deadly than omicron. XBB.1.5 has already spread from the United States. There are cases detected in several European countries, including the UK, Germany and France. India and Singapore have also reported cases. An epidemiologist at the University of East Anglia, UK, Paul Hunter, said, “It is likely XBB.1.5 will become the dominant variant in Europe, perhaps even by the end of January. But we’ll be able to manage it; there’s no doubt about that.”
XBB.1.5 is a subvariant of omicron, which is currently the dominant coronavirus variant globally. It is a “recombinant” sub-variant of omicron, which contains genetic material from different coronavirus sub-variants. Hunter said, “Since we first discovered XBB some months back, it’s been evolving. XBB.1.5 has evolved escape mutations, meaning the virus is better at evading immunity.”
The World Health Organization and other health institutions are closely monitoring infection and hospital data to track the subvariant’s impact on patients. Because XBB.1.5 is a subvariant of omicron, vaccination and/or prior COVID-19 infection will still provide systemic immunity to it.